To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the British Army in the Laikipia region of Kenya is developing a strategy to minimise the impact of its activities on wildlife, tourism and the local economy.

My Lords, the Army has measures in place to minimise the impact of its activities on wildlife, tourism and the local economy in Laikipia. This is standard practice wherever British forces undertake overseas military training.

My Lords, I thank the Minister for that reply. Of course, we are all keen to ensure that the Army has good training opportunities in the countries in which it trains and that its reputation is highly positive. However, the Army has recently greatly extended what it calls its Grand Prix training activities in Laikipia, which is an important centre for wildlife and biodiversity and an important tourism destination. Should not the Army be doing more, through consultation and local partnerships with bodies such as the Laikipia Wildlife Forum, to create a strategy to ensure that wildlife and tourism sustainability is pursued through stewardship schemes and the like?

My Lords, I welcome the noble Lord’s acknowledgement of the importance of this training to us and to the Kenyans who also participate in that area. It is right that we have recently extended the amount of training in that area. We take very seriously our obligations to the local community and local needs in terms of wildlife conservation and tourism, which is important there. We have individual agreements with ranch owners, we are members of the Laikipia Wildlife Forum and we try to liaise with local people on these issues. At present we are negotiating an extension and a change to our memorandum of understanding with the Kenyans in order to incorporate all that we need to do to make sure that we are a positive contributor in that area and that we take into account all the issues that have been mentioned.

My Lords, does the Minister agree that many of the best wildlife areas in the United Kingdom are MoD training areas?

Yes, my Lords. That is a matter of fact and we are very conscious of our obligations there as well.

My Lords, I declare an interest as a trustee of Tusk Trust, a wildlife conservation charity that does a lot of work in Kenya. While I agree that the British Army could do a lot more to improve its communications with the local community as to its operations in northern Kenya, is the Minister aware that it has contributed enormously to the infrastructure there through the improvement of airstrips and roads to several of the community conservation initiatives in the region? Next week it will be providing a huge amount of support for the Lewa marathon, which is one of the largest events in that region raising money for wildlife conservation projects.

My Lords, I am pleased to have confirmation of the positive contribution that our Armed Forces can make and are making in that area. We provide a great deal of local employment, we have medical exercises that improve immunisation in the area and we carry out many engineering works such as those that have just been mentioned. Overall, this positive contribution means that there is a great deal of synergy between our needs and those of the local area.

My Lords, Exercise Grand Prix has been crucial in training battle groups in an environment similar to those in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now that we have pulled out of Iraq, will the Minister confirm that we will carry on training in this area?

My Lords, training in this area is critical to many of the challenges that we might face in the world in future and we are very conscious of the need to maintain training. As I mentioned, we are negotiating adjustments to the memorandum of understanding with the Kenyans to reflect the increased training that we are doing and intend to continue in the near future.

My Lords, I welcome what the Minister has said about the new MoU with the Government of Kenya. Does she recognise that the Laikipia area has the largest collection of diverse wildlife in Kenya outside the Masai Mara? That is why it is so crucial. In the renegotiation of the MoU, will the Ministry of Defence pay particular attention to access to water supplies in that area for the wildlife?

My Lords, I have been briefed on what we are doing about water supplies. We are making a positive contribution by drawing water from rivers and having purification facilities there. This is an extremely important area for wildlife and conservation. We have been exercising in Laikipia for many years now and it is interesting that, while wildlife generally in Kenya is under great pressure, the wildlife population in Laikipia is increasing. That shows that there is good co-ordination, which we must build on.

My Lords, following the question asked by the noble Earl, Lord Attlee, about the quality of the land held for training purposes in the UK, will the Minister assure us that the Ministry of Defence is not hoarding more land of such natural beauty than is necessary for training purposes?

My Lords, I am sure that we are not holding more land than is absolutely necessary. Training is important and we have to be able to do it in a range of circumstances. Our training needs are clear. We have a good training programme and we are conscious of our obligations to everyone.

My Lords, I thank the Minister for her replies to the various questions. Will she confirm the date on which the discussions on the new MoU started?

My Lords, we had representatives in Kenya earlier this year and we are hoping to conclude those discussions this year.